Yudhisthir the Just
Becomes
Yudhisthir the Compassionate

He wasn’t fair to Draupadi for putting her up as a stake during the game of dice.  He did not apologise for that.  Nor did he answer her question about legality of his action.  Yudhisthir forgot that justice has to be delivered to those close to him as well as those wo lived in his kingdom.  Consistently, he was unjust to Draupadi and even as she lay dying, he pronounced his injustice to her simply because he thought she was partial to Arjun !  There was no evidence for this – except his own paranoia. 

As with Jayadratha, he let family sensitivities and sensibilities dictate his actions.
As with Bakasur and Kichak, Yudhishthir was overly cautious and did not want to help the weak or the meek !

These were not the acts of Dhramaraja. 

He did not give Draupadi justice when Jayadratha abducted her and was brought back to be punished.  He let Jayadratha go for sake of his cousin sister Dushala.  What about Draupadi ?  What about all those other women he might still continue to molest ?  Dushala never came to ask how the Pandavas were in the exile or tie a rakhi to their hands.  She never came to the rescue of her sister-in-law or rebuke her blood brothers for the way they behaved with Pandavas and their wife.  Yet, Dharmaraja felt compelled to rescue the marriage of his absent cousin sister rather than preserve the honour of his own wife !  Why ?

This was not the act of Dhramaraja.

When Kichak kicked and abused her in his very presence, Yudhisthir once again delivered no justice to her.  He mouthed some homilies and asked her to be patient.  How long should a woman remain patient ?  How many times can she continue to be abused, bullied and molested before seeking justice by any other means ?  Should a victim wait to be beaten up, raped, mugged, beaten to the point of death before seeking protection from justice ?  Once bloodied, broken or raped, what use is it for the victim that justice system simply chastises and bully / perpetrator and does not recompense the victim ?  At what point does the justice step in to avoid further damage to the victim ? 

This was not the act of Dhramaraja. 

Dharmaraja was too process driven and too prejudiced to realise the injustices he himself was perpetrating.

Yudhithir forgot that his bodily entry into heaven would not be a great miracle –

* In his youth, Grandsire Bhishma had studied in heaven.  ;

* He also chose to forget that rishis – including Vyasa – often went to heaven in their physical and astral bodies through power of taapa. 

* Krushna reached heaven in his human body, along with his wife Satyabhama, because he was returning things taken from Indra by an Asur. 

* He also conveniently forgot that Arjun had been to heaven and lived there for a few years while he studied the art of war and dance ! 

Yudhisthir’s idea that just because a dog physically managed to survive the journey to top of the Himalaya, he was entitled to an entry into heaven is equally amazing !  His brothers and wife, who had supported him all his life and had been more loyal than any dog, were left to die on the mountain. 
This was not the act of Dhramaraja. 

What is most striking is the way Yudhishthir reacts when he sees his enemies in heaven.  Seeing Duryodhan, Dushanshan, Shakuni and others in heaven makes Yudhisthir very angry.  He demands to know on what basis these monstrous men are offered such high honours.  He saw heaven as a place attained only through merit.  He saw no merit in Kauravas.  Yet, they were here – before him !  If he really saw no merit in Kauravas, why was he so soft on them throughout his life ?  Why was he unwilling to forgive them now - now when they were in heaven - and advocate “brotherly love” here ?  Why was he not willing to “share and share alike” here as he was on earth ? 

Was Yudhisthir's piety earth bound ? 
Was his mercy and kindness to Kauravas equally earth bound ? 
Like hypocrites who deny themselves material pleasures on earth and yet plan to enjoy all these pleasures in heaven, did Yudhishthir hope to have sweet revenge on Kauravas in heaven ? 
Why did he expect Karna, who harassed him as much as Kauravas, to be in heaven along with his brothers ?  Just because of blood ties ?
His agitation and upset was greater when he was told that his own brothers and Karna were not here.  Seeing them in hell really upset him.  Why, simply because they were his brothers ?  Had they done no wrong in life ?

Yudhisthir may have ascended to heaven in his earthly body, but he had not left his earthly feelings behind.  More importantly, in heaven, his prejudices, loves, hates, biases came into sharp focus and he expressed feelings suppressed all through his life. 

The most telling moment comes when Yudhisthir decides to stay in “hell” with his friends and family to comfort them.  Maybe now he has realised how “hellish” it was for others to live with his over-pious persona.  Maybe its at this point that Yudhisthir realises how they had suffered to make his life smooth and he decided to return their love – truly return their love – by staying behind for them.  

Dharmaraja, who had been rather severe in his earthly existence, discovered empathy and suddenly his life was transformed !  The moment Yudhisthir “the just”, the “unbending upholder of “dharma””, discovered “compassion” for his family, the scene changed and he found himself on the banks of the celestial Ganga.  Devas ask him to bathe in the celestial waters so he can get a divine body. 

Once he has cast off his mortal coils, previous visions of haven and hell disappeared.  The unfair image of evil men occupying heavenly seats was also gone.  Those previous visions of heaven and hell were yet another test of his character.  His previous visions were replaced by something totally different.  He now saw his brothers in the company of the respective devas they came from.  He saw Karna with Sun, Bhishma with Vasus, Draupadi with the Devas, Arjun with Vishnu and Kauravas amongst the danava hosts.  He now saw the world as a divine lila – a magnificent play where everyone has been assigned a role to play.  The Mahabharata war had been a magnificent war game, executed by the divine ruler of the universe and now that the game was over, all the pieces were back in their boxes.

Free will, karmic retribution and now lila. 

It’s an evolutionary progression of looking at the world around us. 

May be that is the ultimate lesson of the Mahabharata !